The Thorny Issue of Teachers and Social Media

Here's a post that is sure to set tongues wagging -- teachers and social media.

Before I even say anything more, disclaimers:

• I am a pretty involved social media user.
• I am not a social media expert.
• I am not a perfect person -- I am a mere human like everyone else.
• I am not anyone's boss.
• I am not anyone's parent (except for Becky).
• I make lots of mistakes in life.
• I am very good at learning from my mistakes (it is actually my favorite way to learn).

I may not have my own classroom full of kiddos, and I may not have loads of papers to grade, but I am still a teacher. I am a teacher who uses social media both personally and professionally. I work pretty carefully to keep the two separate -- that's not to say that there isn't cross-over (like this Tweet I put out recently from my work Twitter account of my dog after I drew eyebrows on her -- I laugh at it every time I see it).

My dog looks like Joan Crawford 😂😂😂 #Eyebrows pic.twitter.com/Y8VhEpPCVR

— Renee Bogacz (@mrsbogacz) January 30, 2018

Even though I try to keep my personal and professional life separate online, I still try to be conscious of the fact that my personal accounts need to be used thoughtfully.

Before I go any further, let's get this out of the way: it is not fair. I know it's not fair that teachers seem to be held to a higher standard than people in other professions, maybe even an unreasonable standard, but that's the way it is and I don't know how to change it. So I do my best to work with it (keeping in mind bullet point #3 above).

So if you are a teacher who also uses social media, here are some of the most common guidelines we should follow when it comes to our social media accounts, especially the ones we use personally:

• Use privacy settings. Your personal accounts should be limited to viewing by only your friends and family. This gives you the best level of control over your online appearance. One caveat: even with privacy settings at their tightest, nothing is private. Anything can be screen shotted or printed out and shared.
• Avoid the risque, controversial, and provocative. Whether it's language, photos, or something else, or if it involves a lack of clothing or offensive language, try to avoid it. Remember bullet point #3 above? Yes, I know I've posted pictures of the drinks I've had at dinner. Yes, I've posted pictures of myself at parties where other people have drinks in their hands. Yes, I have a colorful vocabulary. But I also make sure I don't have pictures taken of me looking like some kind of wild party animal (mostly because I'm really not -- I think I'm just too old and boring). My friends and family are cognizant of the fact that I'm a teacher, so they make sure they are thoughtful about what they share about me on social media, too. I always imagine whatever I am posting online being on a bulletin board in my classroom. If I don't really want it on the bulletin board, I try to avoid having it online.
• Don't complain about your job, employer, students, parents, or coworkers online. It's one thing to say, "I had a rough day today and I'm exhausted." It's quite another to say, "The little monsters were in rare form today and I am glad to be rid of them until tomorrow." Even if you're not naming names or speaking in generalities, it might land you in hot water.
• Don't post pictures of your students on your personal social media pages. This is a big line blur. Even if you don't use their names, it just shouldn't be done.
• Don't "friend" or "follow" students or parents through your personal social media. Again, this can really blur lines. These last two points can be tricky if your students and parents are your friends and neighbors in the community (I live AND work in Channahon, so this something I am face). If you are going to interact with those students and parents because they're your neighbors, just make sure that you're conscious of the fact that they are also students and parents.

Ultimately, this post this week is just to help teachers be aware of where some of the possible pitfalls are when it comes to social media use -- it's certainly not any kind of lecture (see bullet point #3 at the top of this post). Certainly, there are exceptions to all situations. All we need to do is constantly remind ourselves to be thoughtful about our own online behavior and it will be all good.

Your Official Invitation

My post for this week is to officially invite you to this year's Institute on Teaching and Learning, which will take place on Friday, February 16, 2018 at Channahon Junior High School!

Check out the event's official website here!

For now, I'd like to share some highlights with you:

• We have teachers from all four buildings presenting on a wide variety of topics that are applicable to all ability levels, grade levels, and subject areas. Don't assume a session led by a primary grades teacher will only work for those who teach the itty bitties. Also don't assume a session led by a junior high teacher only works for those who teach those fun middle grades. These sessions have plenty of universal appeal!
• You have the opportunity to get your brain AND body engaged in learning that day! Our very own Mrs. Verbic will be leading an opening session at 7:45 AM in the gym of YOGA! Not athletic? Never done yoga before? No worries! This will be a nice, easy session designed to wake up your body and mind. Wear those super comfy clothes and BYO yoga mat if you've got one and meet in the gym at 7:45!
• Keynote speaker Joe Dufore will share his thoughts on teaching and learning with us. Follow him on Twitter!
• Meet the junior high's first trimester Dream Lab winners. These students created projects that caught the eye of angel investors at the expo in November. These students will be sharing their projects with you in the hallway between sessions. Prepare to be impressed with their innovative work!
• Don't miss the closing session where we will have our own CSD 17 version of a demo slam! Come learn some cool tricks and tools in a lightning fast presentation and vote for your favorite!

Now I'd like to highlight some of the topics being presented that day. We are adding sessions still, so there may be even more to come!

• Mindfulness in the classroom -- something useful for all of us, teachers AND students!
• Highlights from Carol Dweck's book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.
• Coding across the curriculum -- not just for computers class, and not just for tech experts!
• Using green screen video making in the classroom -- more than just a cool gimmick, for sure
• Google Forms -- assessment and more!
• Hyperdocs -- the coolest new way to create engaging material for students!
• BreakoutEDU in the classroom -- more than just a fun game!
• Digital primary sources -- way beyond junior social studies, great for ALL grade level and subject areas!
• Inventive problem solving -- we got an outside speaker for this one and he's kind of my favorite because he's my dad <3
• Disruptive students -- strategies for positive management.
• Helping students become socially emotionally prepared -- this goes hand in hand with academic learning!
• WeVideo -- the nuts and bolts (did you know that all CSD students and teachers have accounts with WeVideo????)
• Google VR -- strap on those goggles and discover how to use this immersive experience with students across grade levels and subject areas!
• Google Certification -- what is it, how does it happen, why do it?

There are so many exclamation points in my post this week because I am so excited about this day! For too long, teachers have thought institute days were a drag or they weren't practical, but THIS institute day is customized for OUR teachers and OUR students and OUR school culture because it is OUR leaders providing the learning opportunities that day!

Share in the comments what you are looking forward to the most!

Cool Tool Alert: Flippity

I have got a cool, FREE, EASY tool that you will LOVE -- either for YOU to use or for your STUDENTS to use! It is called Flippity -- I'm going to share with you information about the Flippity Add-On for Google Sheets (note: you can get the add-on for yourself, but if it is something you want your students to have access to, please get in touch with Jeremy).

People tend to explain Flippity as a flash card maker, but it is so much more than that! With the Flippity Add-On, you can create the following things:

• Flashcards
• Memory game
• Quiz show (like Jeopardy)
• Random name picker (will even create random groups)
• Word search
• Spelling words
• Badge tracker
• Crossword
• Bingo
• Hangman
• Progress indicator
• Mad Libs
• Mix and match grid
• Certificate quiz (take a quiz, get a certificate at the end)

Generally speaking, here is how to use the add-on:

1. Open a new Google Sheets file.
2. Click add-ons (once you've already gotten the add-on).
3. Move mouse to Flippity.
4. Click Pick a Template.
5. Click through the templates by clicking n the edge of each card.
6. On each card, you can view a demo or get the template.
7. Click on Template. The template spreadsheet will open up with the demo information in it as placeholders. There are also directions for how to use the template. Change all the placeholder information with what you want to create, following the instructions (this includes the information for publishing the file -- super easy, just a couple mouse clicks).
8. Get the link for what you created by clicking on Add-Ons while you are in the spreadsheet template, moving your mouse to Flippity, then clicking on Flippity.net URL (this will give you a web address you can share to use whatever you created).

Because it is published, when you make a change in the spreadsheet, the change will also take place on whatever you created -- super simple to update!

You might think this sounds complicated -- it's not. It is literally fill in the blank easy! You can create all sorts of activities for your students or have them create activities for themselves or their classmates.

Want to give Flippity a try but don't want to tackle it on your own? Get in touch -- I am seriously SO EXCITED to get some teachers using this tool!

Sharing Your Experience -- Take 2

Not long ago, I sent out a blog post encouraging everyone to consider applying to present at our February Institute day and there were some really terrific responses! But I'm greedy -- I want MORE! So here are a few things to help spur your enthusiasm to share your experience with your colleagues!

• Re-read my original blog post for inspiration and ideas. What is something cool and engaging you do in your classroom? What is a neat project you've done that can be shared with others to replicate? What is a tool you are really comfortable using and think others would like to know how to use, too? These all make great topics for breakout sessions!
• Interested in presenting but you're not sure what to do? Here are some ideas that have been brought to us as topics people are interested in learning about:
• Google Classroom -- Are you an avid Google Classroom user? Have you found ways it has enhanced your classroom or interesting ways to use it (blogging, differentiation, etc.)? Can you share that with our teachers? There are still plenty of people who are still trying to navigate Google Classroom and could use your expertise to guide them!
• Chrome Extensions -- Do you know what Chrome Extensions are? Do you have some that are really useful for you or your kids? There are teachers who don't know yet about how these extensions can really change the way their classroom works. They could use some help from you!
• Google Forms for Assessment -- Do you use the assessment features in Google Forms? This is a terrific feature that not as many teachers know about as you'd think! They could use help from someone experienced in using it to help them!
• Green Screens -- Sure, green screen are fun and cool, but lots of times, teachers just aren't sure about how to incorporate this into their lessons; they just don't know for sure how to make it academic and not just fun. Have you found ways to incorporate green screen video creation into your lessons? If so, I know there are plenty of teachers who would love to hear what you've done so they can try it themselves!
• Are you one of the Google Certified Educators in the district? If so, I need you! One session will be a panel of Google Certified Educators talking to interested teachers about what Google Certification is, why it's valuable, how to go about getting ready for the exam, etc. Please let me know if you're willing to be part of this panel.
• Have you been fortunate enough to attend one of the EdTech Team Google Summits? If so, then you know that one of the highlights is always the demo slam! I'd love to see our day end on a high note with a fun demo slam, but for that to happen, we need people to participate! You don;t have to be a presenter for a breakout session to do the demo slam -- all you need to do is be willing to spend 2 - 3 minutes sharing a cool tool with everyone! Here is EdTech Team's guide for how to win a demo slam, and if you're curious to know more about them, ask anyone who's been to one of these Google Summits to tell you about them! Our own Jeremy McBrayer has been part of a demo slam explaining why your email signature sucks!

Inspired? GREAT! Here's the form to fill out to present! I can't wait to hear from you!